Final thoughts on Israel
We had a great time, but how good it is to be home! And how good it is to be blogging on my laptop and not on the iPad!! I'm not sure what it is, but just between you and me I don't think iPad and Blogger (a Google blogging platform) like each other very much. Writing wasn't a problem, but as soon as I tried to upload photos into a post, Blogger started to behave very badly. Or maybe it was the iPad that was behaving badly, I really couldn't tell. Whatever it was, it made getting a post ready to upload so much harder and longer than it should have been. Every time I enlarged a photo, or swapped out a photo, or deleted a photo, the post would freeze and I would have to save it, close it and reopen it to do anything further. It was incredibly frustrating at times, so it's a joy to be back using a laptop!
Now let's wrap up Israel, the first part of our trip, and the main reason we did the trip at all. Obviously I’m no expert on Israel, we spent just shy of 12 days in the country, and really just scratched the surface, but for what they're worth here are my final thoughts and other observations (and for any Israel experts out there, I apologise in advance for any mistakes!!)
Firstly, Israel is a diverse country. From the landscape to the people, it's hard to know what to expect where. We were blessed to have Israel looking probably as green as it's been in a long, long while, thanks to abundant winter rains.
Except in the desert, of course, where it was brown as usual. While Israel isn't exactly mountainous by world standards, it does have some impressive hills and small mountains, but equally it has plenty of flat plains and, of course, the lowest point on earth, the Dead Sea, and we got to appreciate much of it. The only areas we didn't see were further south from Ein Bokek at the Dead Sea, and of course the Gaza Strip. But after the little bit of Gaza drama the weekend we arrived, we were glad to keep our distance.
Israel is considered "the holy land" for many people, so you should definitely expect hordes of pilgrims everywhere. You'll recognise them because they'll be touching things, kissing things, crying, lying on things. It's true. The pagan shrines may be long gone (or maybe not), but there is still plenty of idol worship going on in Israel. It's a strange phenomenon (that I understand but don't agree with) and very entrenched in many world religions, and it's everywhere in Israel.
If you don't believe, or agree with, all the hype, then don't bother joining a 2 or 3 hour queue just to see a spot in a dark cave, inevitably under some Catholic church, where someone significant may or may not have sat, or stood, or died. Move on and see something else, queueing is no way to spend your days in Israel when there is just SO MUCH to see and do.
One benefit of seeing a country like Israel with a tour group and a knowledgeable and experienced local guide is that you get so much additional and background information that you wouldn't get if you were exploring on your own and just reading the plaques. And you can ask questions along the way, which always leads to more information. And others ask their questions, that you might not have thought of, and all up it makes for a richer experience. Also, we heard a couple of times that there are places you simply can't go unless you're with a guide, so how true this is I'm not sure but I also probably wouldn't be prepared to take the risk if I really wanted to see all the significant sites.
On the downside, there is not enough time ANYWHERE when you do an organised tour. You might, if you're lucky, get some moments of contemplation, but a tour is generally just a whirlwind "taster". They really do pack it in, which is awesome because you see so much, but you see it all only briefly, and then you're moving on. We did long to linger at times, especially at those places that are so steeped in history, but on the other hand we were excited and thankful to see SO MANY places in such a short time, and to have had the very experienced tour organisers plan the itinerary that allowed us to do just that. Getting in everywhere was all taken care of and so streamlined, we waited only a few minutes while the guide sorted out the tickets (that were already pre-paid) and in we went.
However, don't expect necessarily to have a Christian tour guide in Israel, even with a Christian tour. We were warned of this before we arrived, and were blessed to have local believers guide us in other parts of our tour, but in Israel our guide was Jewish (and not a Messianic Jew). He "talked the talk", often referring to Jesus as "the Lord", and respectfully requested the one pastor in the group to pray each morning, and to conduct the baptisms at the Jordan River and communion at the Garden Tomb, but he didn't "walk the walk" and was unconvinced about Jesus. Steeped in his Jewish heritage, he'd heard it all before.
Expect to tie yourself in knots trying to understand Jewishness. I did, and I still don't really get it! I lost count of the number of times I asked the question "But what makes someone Jewish?" and the answers NEVER fully satisfied!!! I may have had a Jewish grandmother, but according to the "rules" I am NOT Jewish because my mother isn't Jewish, apparently. Not at all. So it's obviously not in your DNA........ or is it?? I may never know!
Obviously since getting back, many people have already asked about our favourite moments in Israel. It's hard if not impossible to single out one favourite, but there were a few really memorable times that come to mind. Firstly, our Betzavta dinner with a local family in Haifa was one of the best things we planned in our first few days (you can read more about Betzavta on their website here); secondly I found our time on and around the Sea of Galilee really lovely; floating in the Dead Sea was kind of a "bucket list" item; and of course Jerusalem is a fascinating and must-see part of any trip to Israel.
Lastly, if you visit Israel as a Christian, you should expect to be changed. At the very least, reading the bible will never be the same again. Even now, several weeks after we left Israel, and back home in Australia, we read with different eyes. Place names like Mount Zion, Caesarea, Capernaum, Bethany, the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, and Jerusalem come with a visual and experiential representation. Events like Jesus cooking fish on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, or being taken to the high priest's house to be judged, come with a memory of standing there, on the bow of a boat, or at Caiaphas' house, at the top of the steps up which Jesus would have been taken.
These are the things that will stay with us for a long time.
These are the things that will stay with us for a long time.
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